From J. T. Moggridge   18 September 1869

2 Montague Villas | Richmond | (Surrey)

Sept. 18 | 1869.

Dear Mr. Darwin

Thank you for your kind note recieved this morning.1

The plant you enclose is Lathyrus Ochrus DC., & I fully hope that I shall be able to get some seeds for you before long, as it is not a rare species—2

I enclose a fragment from a more advanced specimen, also gathered at Cannes; in order to shew you that leaflets (to the number of 2–4) are developed towards the summit of the stem—

I notice that it is common to find (as in the fragment sent), three leaflets, of which the two upper ones form a pair, while, the lower one is solitary—3

diagram

This species has much in common with L. Clymenum L., a plant which abounds in the South, & of which I could easily obtain seeds, if you wished for it—4

Believe me | yrs. very sincerely | J. Traherne Moggridge.

1
CD’s letter has not been found.
2
Lathyrus ochrus is cyprus vetch. It is found near the Mediterranean, where Moggridge was expecting to return shortly (see letter from J. T. Moggridge, 16 September [1869]).
3
On CD’s interest in phyllotaxy, see Correspondence vol. 11. CD’s notes and an unpublished draft on the subject are in DAR 51a: 1–32.
4
Lathyrus clymenum is Spanish vetchling.

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-6899,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-6899